Three finalists announced for name the team contest

VIP Sports and Entertainment has announced three final names up for public consideration to name the new North American Soccer League Virginia franchise.

According to VIP Sports spokesman David D’Onofrio, the contest’s final phase, Kick the Vote ’13 began Jan. 3 and the three final nicknames will be Cavalry, Dominion or Stallions.

The NASL Virginia franchise will debut in 2014 and play its home games at the forthcoming ballpark located at One Loudoun, immediately off the interchange of Route 7 and the Loudoun County Parkway in Ashburn.

Final name structuring has not been established at this time and the full name will be announced Feb. 6 immediately following the VIP Sports viewing party of the U.S. Soccer Team World Cup Qualifying match against Honduras. The site of that will be determined at a later date.

“The response was awesome and we probably had thousands of entries. The three final entries all resembled the area well,” D’Onofrio said. “Dominion obviously stems from the Old Dominion and we had a tremendous amount of suggestions for that and its various iterations. Cavalry really reflects the submissions for Rangers like Mosby’s Rangers. Our concern with that is there is quite a few other Rangers organizations out there and Cavalry was a cool relation there with horse-mounted soldiers. And Stallions obviously goes hand in hand with our equine industry out west and the rich tradition we have here in Loudoun and in Northern Virginia.”

NASL Virginia’s Director of Soccer Operations Mark Simpson noted the final decision is in the fans hands now.

“The name the fans pick as they Kick the Vote will set the identity of this organization for years to come,” Simpson said in the news release. “All three of these names share a spirit and vitality that reflects the rapidly growing and vibrant community that is Northern Virginia.”

Voting will close Feb. 4 and citizens can vote on naslvirginia.com, post to the team Facebook Page at facebook.com/NASLVirginia, send a tweet with the hashtag #KickTheVote13 or make your pick on the NASL Virginia iPhone app, now available for free in the iTunes store.

How about the Ashburn Wine Sippers, The Lawyers or The Country Clubbers? Give the opponents a good idea of the fan base to expect. We’ll be like Philly fans but less confrontational.
“Hey you bumped into me in the hot dog line, I’m submitting an injury claim right now. Expect to hear from my lawyer ... he’s my neighbor. And I’ll go get a neck brace from my doctor ... He’s my other neighbor.

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